February 4, 2019

Valentine Rag Wreath DIY

I enjoy wreath making, and by far one of my favorite types to create are rag wreaths. Rag wreaths are great because they're incredibly simply to assemble and super cheap to make if you have scrap fabric laying around your house that you cannot find another use for and still want to re-purpose it instead of tossing it away.

For the frame of this wreath, you're going to want to use this wired one, and I'd highly recommend using a wire frame with a few different concentric wire circles inside it. This is going to give your wreath a much fuller look to it since you can attach the rags on the inside and outside of the frame. You can find wire wreath frames at local craft and floral shops in various shapes and sizes, but I got mine at Dollar Tree--win, win for frugality! Gather your fabrics that you're going to use for your wreath, and then you're going to cut and tear them into small strips to make the "rags."

I generally like to cut my strips into one inch by 5-inch strips, but I also cut them into longer and shorter strips as well as I go to get added variety to the wreath. If you want your strips to have the frayed look around the edges I have done below, then instead of cutting the fabric strip, you're going to rip them from the initial fabric piece. Keep in mind that this is not an exact science here, and when I make a rag wreath there's a whole lot of randomization and estimation as far as measurements and placement. It's difficult to mess it up, and perfection is soooo not necessary for this craft!

To attach the rags, just do your basic overhand knot doubled to secure each rag to the wire frame. Work your way around the entire frame switching between the different fabric patterns as you go to your liking. Tie them to all the differing wires (I had four in this frame) in your wreath and compact them really well.

The more rags you use in the wreath the more bulk it will have and give the wreath a "full" look to it. I tend to lean towards overdoing it on the rags to avoid any empty or lean spots. Fill it up all around and step back periodically to make sure you're balancing your different fabrics rags throughout the whole frame and not just on one side or spot in particular.

Finally, I like to add a focal piece of some type to add to the wreath for interest to the eye. In this case, I used this galvanized tin and wood heart ornament I found at Hobby Lobby. I simply tied it to the wire frame on either side at the bottom.